The College of Accounting Sciences (CAS) at Unisa, through its Quality Assurance and Enhancement unit in collaboration with the Department of Institutional Quality Assurance and Enhancement (DIQAE), remains committed to ensuring that its qualifications are rigorous and aligned with industry standards as prescribed by professional bodies.

To date, the unit has facilitated full endorsements of the college’s qualifications and strengthened Unisa’s collaborations with key professional bodies, including the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA), the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), and the South African Institute of Taxation (SAIT). These partnerships support the college’s strategy of creating, advancing, and opening multiple pathways into the accounting profession.

Most recently, CAS renewed its partnership with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), a leading global professional accounting body whose Chartered Certified Accountant qualification is recognised in over 180 countries.

The renewed partnership builds on over six years of successful collaboration and continues to expand. On 17 and 18 February 2026, ACCA conducted a site visit at Unisa to verify that CAS has adequate quality assurance processes and systems in place to ensure that qualifications remain aligned with ACCA’s standards. These monitoring visits occur routinely every three to five years, during which ACCA representatives assess whether a university continues to comply with endorsement requirements.

According to Mlungisi Hlongoane, Head of Quality Assurance and Enhancement, CAS is intentional in its engagement with professional bodies to ensure alignment between its curriculum and the standards expected by endorsing bodies and industry.

Mlungisi Hlongwane, Head of Quality Assurance and Enhancement, providing an overview of the college’s vision and strategy

Ayanda Ndhlovu, Acting Coordinator of Quality Assurance and Enhancement, explained that this formal partnership affirms ACCA’s endorsement of Unisa modules, enabling numerous graduates to qualify for ACCA professional exemptions and register as Chartered Certified Accountants.

The endorsement ensures that CAS adheres to ACCA’s international framework for teaching and learning, equipping students to compete on a global stage. Ndhlovu added that such partnerships reaffirm the college’s commitment to “upholding the highest standards of education and ensuring that our graduates are equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in their careers.”

Furthermore, ACCA’s endorsement with the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA) allows Unisa graduates who register with ACCA the opportunity to become Registered Auditors. This is achieved through ACCA’s Audit Development Programme (ADP), which develops audit specialists. These initiatives demonstrate the college’s commitment to maintaining dynamic partnerships that deliver maximum value to students.

During the monitoring visit, ACCA representatives reviewed several key areas, including how Unisa tracks student performance in endorsed programmes, interventions for students facing academic difficulties, examination benchmarking, marking, and moderation processes to ensure consistency and fairness, measures to safeguard exam integrity; support mechanisms for students learning in an online environment, strategies for integrating employability skills into accredited programmes, and methods for gathering employer feedback to enhance programmes and support student employability.

Unisa’s support departments also participated in the visit to provide a comprehensive view of Unisa’s operations. These included the Library, Student Counselling, Student Retention, and Student Disciplinary units, ensuring a holistic assessment of the college’s commitment to quality and student success.

The Executive Dean of CAS, Dr Moses Hlongoane, expressed his gratitude to ACCA for their continued support and collaboration and welcomed the preliminary report that ACCA will share.

* By Ntsako Mohlaba, Communication and Marketing Specialist, College of Accounting Sciences